English ship Tredagh (1654)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Resolution.

The Tredagh was a 52-gun third-rate frigate built under the Late 1652 Programme for the navy of the Commonwealth of England by Sir Phineas Pett at Ratcliffe, and launched on 22 May 1654 under the name Tredagh^[2] (Tredagh is an alternative name for the Irish town of Drogheda, scene of the Siege of Drogheda, a Roundhead victory, during the English Civil War).

The Battle of Lowestoft, 1665
History
England
Name	Tredagh
Namesake	Siege of Drogheda
Ordered	December 1652
Builder	Phineas Pett II, Ratcliffe
Launched	22 May 1654
Renamed	HMS Resolution, 1660
Fate	Burnt, 25 July 1666
Notes	Participated in: Battle of Lowestoft St. James's Day Battle
General characteristics [1]
Class and type	Third-rate frigate
Tons burthen	77127⁄94 bm
Length	117 ft 3 in (35.7 m) (keel)
Beam	35 ft 2 in (10.7 m)
Depth of hold	14 ft 5 in (4.4 m)
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Complement	210 in 1660; 290 in 1666
Armament	52 guns of various weights of shot, later raised to 58

After the Restoration in 1660, the Tredagh was taken into the new Royal Navy, and was renamed HMS Resolution^[2] (the existing English First rate Resolution - originally built as the Prince Royal - was renamed HMS Royal Prince at the same time). By 1665 her ordnance had been increased to 58 guns, comprising 20 demi-cannon and 4 culverins on the lower deck, 26 12-pounders on the upper deck, and 8 demi-culverins on the quarterdeck.^[1]

On 25 February 1665 (Julian calendar, then still in use; 7 March 1666 in the Gregorian calendar) Resolution fought in the Battle of Lowestoft as the flagship of Rear Admiral Robert Sansum (who was killed). On 25 July 1666 Julian (4 August 1666 Gregorian) she fought in the St. James's Day Battle under the command of Captain Willoughby Hannam as the flagship of Rear Admiral Sir John Harman. In the battle she was set on fire by a Dutch fireship and later exploded, with some 200 men drowned.^[3]

Notes

1. Rif Winfield, British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603-1714, p.50.
2. Brian Lavery, The Ship of the Line - Volume 1, p.159.
3. David Hepper, British Warship Losses in the Age of Sail 1649-1860 (Seaforth Publishing, 2023) ISBN 978-1-3990-3102-8.

References

• Lavery, Brian (1983) The Ship of the Line – Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650–1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
• Winfield, Rif (2009) British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603-1714: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-040-6.